RSM - a force for positive change

Crisis Communication

4-6 October, 2022(hybrid programme)

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Crisis communication at a glance

Your learning objectives and learning experience

For whom?

Why crisis communication?

Programme overview

Certification and ECTS

Course expert: Professor Paul Argenti

Practical information

About our Part-time Executive Master in Corporate Communication

03

04

05

05

06

07

07

08

09

3

A crisis may occur either naturally or as a result of human error,

intervention, or even malicious intent. It can include tangible

devastation, such as the loss of lives or assets, or intangible

devastation, such as the loss of an organisation’s credibility or other

reputation damage. A crisis can also have significant financial impact

on your organisation, and it usually affects multiple constituencies

in more than one market. So you must communicate effectively to

avoid negative consequences. You can minimize negative reactions

and fallout by preparing for a crisis by creating and analysing a crisis

communication plan.

In this three-day course you will learn all aspects of crisis

communication for managers, including: general communication

strategy, crisis definition, crisis anticipation, crisis preparation,

effective communication during a crisis, and finally, crisis prevention.

You will think more strategically about communication and feel

more confident in dealing with all aspects of crisis communication

after this masterclass. You will learn specific tools to apply before,

during, and after a crisis hits, and some general frameworks that

will help your organisation conquer a crisis situation, and ideally,

prevent crises from happening in the first place. And, you will

investigate how to anticipate potential risk areas ahead of time, and

as a result, behave more proactively when a crisis strikes.

Crisis communication at a glance

4

Learning objectives

Through this course you will:

• learn how to anticipate potential risk areas ahead of time

• obtain a strategic communication perspective on crisis

communication

• increase your confidence in dealing with various crisis

situations

• investigate specific tools to apply before, during, and

after a crisis

• explore a variety of framing techniques

• learn how to consider appropriate communication channels.

You will also explore how to determine the appropriate communication channels when sending a message to employees, consumers and the media during high-pressure crisis times.

Your learning experience

The course consists of a combination of lectures, real-life case

discussions, video clips, and interactive exercises.

The course comprises:

• Lectures that provide the basic theoretical frameworks to

approach every topic, accompanied by additional reading to

further develop your understanding of each course topic.

• Case studies and team presentations to help you discuss each

topic in depth so you can better understand how to practice

the theoretical concepts.

• In-class discussions which encourage you to become actively

engaged and share your experiences with other participants.

Hybrid education

RSM has constructed a professional studio to facilitate your hybrid

classes. You can attend the classes in person or via real-time Zoom

video technology.

With this hybrid format, you and your fellow participants are

presented with the same information by the professor, at the same

time. You can all participate in class discussions, role play and carry

out group work.

Your learning objectives and learning experience

5

For whom?

Are you an executive, a communication professional, PR managers,

HR leader or marketing professional? This course will help you if

you are responsible for developing organisational strategic and

crisis plans, or if you are the one to manage a crisis situation.

You will meet a diverse group of accomplished, driven and open-

minded professionals from Europe and beyond, working in various

communication positions in the public and private sectors, in NGOs,

and in consultancies. Like you, they should be educated to at least

bachelor level with at least three years of work experience.

No matter what industry or location you’re in, any organisation

can find itself involved in a crisis. The question is not if a crisis hits,

but when. Obviously, some industries are more crisis-prone than

others, but every organisation is at risk. Crises of all sorts have

enough common elements to create a comprehensive crisis plan to

give your organisation a strong position. Planning and preparation

are the key to effective crisis management and communication. As

British author Aldous Huxley put it: “The amelioration of the world

cannot be achieved by sacrifices in moments of crisis; it depends

on the efforts made and constantly repeated during the humdrum,

uninspiring periods, which separate one crisis from another, and of

which normal lives mainly consist.”

Why crisis communication?

66

Communicating before a crisis

• Introduction and communication strategy

• Session 1: Case ‘Carson Container Company’

• Group discussion and lecture

• Session 2: Case ‘Costa Concordia Crisis’

• Group discussion and lecture

• Session 3: The changing environment for business

Tuesday, 4 October 2022

Communicating during a crisis

• Session 4: Case ‘Starbucks Coffee Company’

• Group discussion and lecture

Communicating following a crisis

• Session 5: Case ‘Dow Corning’

• Group discussion and lecture

Wednesday, 5 October 2022

Communicating responsibly in a crisis

• Session 6: Case ‘Coca Cola in India’

• Group discussion and lecture

• Group work

Thursday, 6 October 2022

Programme overview

This three-day hybrid course is well balanced with

sufficient breaks and alternating working methods. The

programme runs from 10:00-17:00 CEST on each of the three

days.

General programme overview:

7

This course is developed and taught by Professor Paul Argenti.

He has been teaching management, corporate responsibility,

corporate communication, crisis communication, and healthcare

management since 1977 when he began at Harvard Business

School. Paul has taught at top international universities since.

He is a Fulbright Scholar and a winner of the Pathfinder Award in

2007 from the Institute for Public Relations for the excellence of

his research over a long career. The Ethisphere Institute also listed

him as one of the most influential people in business ethics. He

serves on an advisory board to the President of the World Bank and

the Board of Trustees for the Ethisphere Institute, and has acted as

consultant and run training programmes on communication for

executives at hundreds of organisations for 30 years.

His books and seminal work focus on corporate values, shared

value, corporate character, and the purpose of the corporation

in modern society. Paul’s blogs are regularly published in Harvard

Business Review, The Washington Post and US News & World

Report, and he appears frequently on radio and television as a

commentator on topics related to management, communications,

reputation, crisis, and corporate responsibility.

Certification and ECTS

Course expert: Professor Paul Argenti

This is an open-book, take-home, final group exam. You have four

hours to make a start with the assignment during the course. You’ll

receive details of this assignment on the last day of the course.

All participants will receive a certificate of participation upon

completion of the course.

This course is worth 5 ECTS, which will be granted upon successful

completion of the assignment, if you are taking this course as

a part of the complete Part-time Executive MSc in Corporate

Communication.

8

Practical information

Dates

The English-taught course will take place from

4-6 October 2022.

Online

Via Zoom

Location

Erasmus University

Burgemeester Oudlaan 50

Erasmus Enterprise building (Q)

Rotterdam, The Netherlands

Fee

The course fee is €2,900, which includes tuition, course

materials, assessment, lunches and refreshments and drinks. A

box of refreshments will be sent to online participants. This fee

does not include hotel accommodation.

Hotel accommodation

There are many nice and affordable hotels within walking

distance of our campus.

Interested?

We are always happy to answer any questions you might have.

Contact us on: ccc@rsm.nl or +31 10 408 2851

Ready to apply?

Secure your place by completing our online application form.

9

This masterclass can be followed on its own, or as a part of our

Part-time Executive MSc in Corporate Communication.

We have offered this master programme since 1998 to

communication professionals who wish to further enhance

their careers. The aim is to provide strategic, leadership and

management skills, as well as in-depth knowledge of corporate

communication, reputation management and related disciplines.

Participants who complete the whole programme are rewarded

with a master degree from Erasmus University Rotterdam.

Our accredited programme is designed to be flexible, and can be

combined with a full-time career. You can therefore start at any

time, with any of our four modules:

To obtain the master degree you must complete all four modules.

Upon completion, you will have gained insight from new academic,

international perspectives, and learned from working with international

peers from diverse industry backgrounds within Europe and beyond.

www.rsm.nl/mcc

About our Part-time Executive Master in Corporate Communication programme

Part I Foundation of corporate communication Foundation course (in January or June)

Part IV Master thesisMaster thesis

Part III Study trip to New YorkInternational study trip

Part II Six advanced elective courses Six advanced elective courses. You can choose six courses from

the 15 that are offered, depending on your personal or professional

interest and availability

Accredited by

Rotterdam School of Management Erasmus University (RSM) is one of Europe’s top-ranked business schools. RSM provides ground-breaking research and education furthering excellence in all aspects of management and is based in the international port city of Rotterdam – a vital nexus of business, logistics and trade. RSM’s primary focus is on developing business leaders with international careers who can become a force for positive change by carrying their innovative mindset into a sustainable future. Our first-class range of bachelor, master, MBA, PhD and executive programmes encourage them to become critical, creative, caring and collaborative thinkers and doers.

Corporate Communication CentreMandeville Building, room T12-48Burgemeester Oudlaan 503062 PA RotterdamThe Netherlandswww.rsm.nl/mcc

© 2022 Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus University (RSM). The information in this

publication is correct as of January 2022, but RSM reserves the right to make changes affecting

policies, fees, curricula, or any other matter announced in this publication without further notice. No

part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form by

any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without written permission

from RSM.